Y13 [EN]: Chapter 220

Y13-220 2011-2012 Regular Season

Gary Neal, receiving the pass from Matt Bonner, knew he had two options: run down the 24-second shot clock or make a smart play to maintain possession. But as the clock ticked down from 15 to 10 seconds, Gary Neal drove to the basket, where Terry expertly positioned himself to block Neal’s path.

[Gary Neal! He’s rushing things! Is he trying to draw a foul?!]

It might have been a good decision if Terry was the only defender. However, Gary Neal seemed to have initiated his drive too early, failing to account for the defensive team’s center camped out under the basket.

“Ughhhhh!!!!”

Gary Neal leaped from the area between the high post and the low post. Tyson Chandler, anticipating the play perfectly, yelled and emphatically swatted the ball away from Gary Neal’s hand.

Wham!!!

[Tyson Chandler with a powerful block!!!]

[The ball bounces to Dirk Nowitzki! Only 8 seconds left!]

Normally, they would call a timeout to set up a play, but Dallas was known for its fast-break offense. Having discussed their transition strategy during the previous timeout, the players immediately launched their attack.

There was no time for hesitation. All five players sprinted down the court, while the San Antonio Spurs players scrambled to defend their basket. Nowitzki, pushing his aging legs, passed the ball to Youngjae, who was trailing him. Instantly, two defenders converged on Youngjae.

Swoosh!!

[Youngjae Yoon! Even double-teamed, he makes an incredible pass! Ah!! Gary Neal, who should have been guarding Jason Terry, is also caught up on Youngjae Yoon, leaving Terry wide open!! James Anderson is scrambling over! He needs to cut him off at the arc!]

3.7 seconds. Terry glanced at the shot clock above Anderson, who was guarding him at the three-point line. Without slowing down, he drove towards the high post in just two steps. Terry’s speed was too much for James Anderson, a small forward, to handle.

“Shoot!!!”

“Just get it off!!”

As if responding to Youngjae and Chandler’s shouts, Terry took his final step, gathered himself, and leaped backward. James Anderson couldn’t react as Terry, who he expected to drive further, suddenly stopped and faded away.

[Jason Terry!! He shoots!!!]

Terry released the ball with all his strength, pushing off his fingertips. The shot clock expired the instant the ball left Terry’s hand.

Beeeep-

Terry, having landed, turned around with a confident smirk, not even bothering to watch the shot.

Swish!

[OH MY GOODNESS!!!! J. E. T. [Jason “Jet” Terry’s nickname] IS BACK!!! THE GAME IS OVER!!!!]

The tens of thousands of fans at the American Airlines Center erupted in excitement, jumping and cheering wildly. The players mobbed Terry. Even Coach Carlisle, usually stoic, clenched his fist, and owner Mark Cuban, unable to contain his excitement, jumped onto the court and hugged Terry, shouting, “He’s The No.1 MIP [Most Improved Player]!”

[The score is 92 to 91! The Dallas Mavericks win! Coach Popovich is shaking his head, looking like he thought he had the game won! But the Dallas Mavericks! They looked like they were collapsing in the early fourth quarter, but they managed to come back in the late fourth quarter! As expected of a rivalry that has lasted for over 10 years, the game ends with a thrilling come-from-behind victory!]

Terry joked that it was nothing special, but remembering Youngjae’s pass, he playfully ruffled Youngjae’s hair as he approached, laughing loudly.

“That was one sweet pass, huh?!”

“That was one sweet buzzer-beater! Terry!”

Thus, the Texas rivalry game ended with the tension and excitement it deserved. The San Antonio Spurs players felt the sting of losing by a single point and hung their heads, but team captain Tim Duncan patted each player on the back, encouraging them, and quickly lifted the team’s spirits. Duncan and Parker, despite not playing in the clutch, comforted the disappointed players, showing no signs of frustration.

“Yoon. I lost today.”

Kawhi Leonard, who had a quiet game with 6 points, 6 rebounds, and a 33% field goal percentage in 23 minutes, approached Youngjae with a voice full of regret. Youngjae smiled and replied,

“Yeah. I won today. But I only won today.”

“Is that so? Then enjoy the feeling to the fullest. Next time, I’ll work harder and get there.”

“Okay. I’ll look forward to it. Let’s have a better game next time.”

The two shared a brief embrace and patted each other on the back. Youngjae was surprised as he watched Leonard walk away. As if befitting a meeting between two of the top 3 power forwards, San Antonio’s captain Tim Duncan, who had been talking to Nowitzki, noticed Leonard returning and started walking towards Youngjae.

“…”

Duncan towered over Youngjae. Youngjae had played against San Antonio several times the previous season, but he hadn’t spoken much with Duncan himself. Duncan wasn’t known for being talkative, and neither was Youngjae. So, Duncan approaching Youngjae felt like facing Duncan head-on for the first time since his return.

Swoosh-

Without a word, Duncan extended his hand. Youngjae shook Duncan’s hand, and Duncan gave him a light hug, patting the back of Youngjae’s head with his right hand as if comforting a teammate.

“If you keep working hard, your time will come.”

Duncan’s famous line. Saying “Now your time will come” to LeBron James was a well-known anecdote among basketball fans. But even after that, Tim Duncan continued to dominate as the league’s best power forward, leading to jokes that Duncan was a demon king, an evil spirit, and an NBA meme [Internet meme, a humorous image, video, piece of text, etc., that is copied and spread rapidly by Internet users] was created saying that Duncan would play until he was 70 years old.

Youngjae knew Duncan’s personality well: a polite and witty leader with composure, but also a fiercely competitive player who craved victory more than anyone else. That was Duncan.

“Don’t lie. You have no intention of stepping down.”

“…Yeah. I have no intention of stepping down. Then, come and take it.”

Youngjae smiled, not breaking eye contact as Duncan released the hug and took a step back.

“You have a short memory. I hope you haven’t forgotten who was on top last year? I’m not the challenger, you are.”

“Of course. But I also know that last year is last year, and this year is this year.”

The two said nothing more. After shaking hands again, Duncan returned to the locker room. Youngjae felt a thrill, goosebumps rising as he realized he had spoken and shaken hands with a player he had always looked up to.

“Ah…”

But Youngjae unconsciously stroked the back of his head, where he had a thick head of hair, with a worried expression. Remembering Manu Ginobili’s bald spot [a reference to a receding hairline], Youngjae couldn’t help but laugh, wondering if he would develop hair loss on the back of his head from Duncan’s touch.

Dallas, after winning three straight games, including an away game against the Phoenix Suns on January 30th, suffered a 9-point loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder after returning home two days later. They managed to defeat the Indiana Pacers to avoid a losing streak, but then suffered a narrow 3-point loss in an away game against the Cleveland Cavaliers the very next day. As expected in a condensed, shortened season, Dallas, with its older roster, struggled with fatigue.

“Wow… this is really tough. Glad we won, though.”

February 8, 2011. After the game against Cleveland on February 4th, they traveled to Denver for an away game. Perhaps because they had four days of rest, the players seemed more relaxed. Refreshed, the Dallas Mavericks achieved a comfortable 15-point victory, 110 to 95, against Denver.

“Why are you acting so unlike yourself, Chandler? Complaining about being tired.”

“Ugh… even for me, this is brutal. If I hadn’t rested for four days, my stamina would have been so shot that I would have collapsed.”

After the game, the players took care of their personal needs and showered. Nowitzki and Youngjae joined Coach Carlisle in the press room for interviews.

The reporters immediately focused on Youngjae, as he had received the most fan votes in Dallas for the All-Star game. Nowitzki, having a less impressive season, was third among forwards and had to wait his turn after Youngjae.

“You received the most votes among players not selected as All-Star starters. What are your thoughts?”

Youngjae responded with a happier expression than usual, perhaps because of the win.

“I’m grateful to the fans who supported me. I did my best, but I still have a lot to improve. I’ll keep working hard so that I can be worthy of the fans’ support, even if they vote me number one.”

Any fan would be proud if their chosen player was number one. Youngjae was saying he would make them feel that way, that he would become a player deserving of being number one in All-Star voting.

“I’m Irock Lyker from Culture Map Dallas. You’ve definitely performed better than the players below you. But some say you received too many votes. What do you think?”

The reporter was referring to the concentrated votes from Korea and the Asian community. While Youngjae had played well, some felt he didn’t deserve over 700,000 votes. Blake Griffin, second among Western forwards, didn’t even reach 900,000, and Ricky Rubio, fourth among guards, only had 350,000. Among players not selected as starters, Rajon Rondo had 540,000 votes.

“I won’t deny it. My supporters may have voted enthusiastically. But I believe I’m good enough to be third. I think any vote is valid under the one-vote-per-day rule. No illegal methods were used. I don’t think I or my voters have any reason to be ashamed of my vote count. Did Ricky Rubio, who is currently fourth, perform better than Nash, who is fifth? I don’t think so.”

Rubio was clearly performing worse than Nash. He was leading Minnesota’s resurgence with a strong rookie season, but he didn’t deserve to be fourth among Western guards. Youngjae, on the other hand, was comparable to Kobe and Paul. His team, Dallas, had a good record, and his stats, both primary and secondary, were impressive.

All-Star Fan Voting Final Results.

Eastern Guard

Derek Rose 1.51 million votes (Starter)

Dwyane Wade 1.33 million votes (Starter)

Rajon Rondo 550,000 votes (Eliminated)

…(Omitted)

Eastern Forward

LeBron James 1.36 million votes (Starter)

Carmelo Anthony 1.04 million votes (Starter)

Amare Stoudemire 380,000 votes (Eliminated)

…(Omitted)

Eastern Center

Dwight Howard 1.66 million votes (Starter)

Joakim Noah 230,000 votes (Eliminated)

…(Omitted)

Western Guard

Kobe Bryant 1.39 million votes (Starter)

Chris Paul 970,000 votes (Starter)

Youngjae Yoon 730,000 votes (Eliminated)

…(Omitted)

Western Forward

Kevin Durant 1.33 million votes (Starter)

Blake Griffin 870,000 votes (Starter)

Dirk Nowitzki 540,000 votes (Eliminated)

…(Omitted)

Western Center

Andrew Bynum 1.05 million votes (Starter)

Tyson Chandler 320,000 votes (Eliminated)

…(Omitted)

============================ Author’s Notes ============================

★Thank you to those who gave advance reservations, recommendations, comments, and coupons!!

＠I tried to add Korean firepower concentration and self-popularity, but Kobe and Paul are insurmountable.

＠Duncan gives the same words to Youngjae as he does to LeBron.

goimosp/// Thank you for pointing it out. I have corrected it.

ㅎ0ㅎ/// The ultimate in comebacks is T-Mac Time lol. T-Mac Time was truly thrilling.

Thank you for your comments, 사라질영혼, misscherry, 이동석동, 여신유리찬양, 흙곰12, -DarkANGEL-^^.

울트라10/// The winning team is lucky, but the losing team is ㄷㄷ

파란가오리/// 엌ㅋㅋ Can’t you turn your younger sibling, who could potentially become a fan, with Parsons or Korver’s face?ㅋㅋ